Hall ’80 to head executive committee of trustees

Not only is Kathryn “Katie” Hall ’80 the first woman to lead the executive committee of the University board of trustees, she is the first executive committee chairperson to sport six piercings in each ear. But though appearances may be different, Hall seems likely to continue the strong leadership atop the board.

The founder, chief executive officer, chief investment officer, chairwoman, and managing director of San Francisco-based Hall Capital Partners, Hall assumed her new post July 1. She has been a trustee since 2002. Her responsibilities, Hall says, will be to work closely with President Tilghman and the other board members “to make sure as issues arise that people are well informed and able to address them.” Her top priority will be the successful completion of the $1.75-billion Aspire campaign.

Hall, who graduated cum laude with a degree in economics and later earned an M.B.A. from Stanford, joined the board of directors of the Princeton University Investment Co. (PRINCO) in 1998 and just completed three years as its chairwoman. Princeton’s financial position is strong, Hall says, thanks to a 10-year planning cycle that has enabled the University to keep a steady course even in an unsettled economy.

Stephen Oxman ’67, a senior adviser for Morgan Stanley and the outgoing chairman of the executive committee, said that Hall “is widely respected for her intelligence, her integrity, her commitment to good governance, and her devotion to Princeton.”

The following alumni have joined the board of trustees as of July 1:  

AKU AMMAH-TAGOE ’11, the new young-alumni trustee, was a writing fellow at the Princeton Writing Center, a residential college adviser in Forbes College, and a senior news producer and staff reporter for WPRB. Next year she will be a teaching fellow in English at Phillips Academy Andover.

A. SCOTT BERG ’71 won the Pulitzer Prize for his 1998 book Lindbergh, about aviator Charles Lindbergh. He also has written biographies of film mogul Samuel Goldwyn, editor Max Perkins, and actress Katharine Hepburn.

PYPER DAVIS ’87, a former president of her class, is chief operating officer of the SEED Foundation, a nonprofit that has established urban public boarding schools for students from underserved communities. She previously worked as an executive with News Corp. and Katalyst, a boutique consulting and venture-capital firm.  

CARL FERENBACH III ’64, a co-founder and managing director of the private-equity firm Berkshire Partners, co-founded with his wife, Judy, the High Meadows Foundation, which has ­supported research, education, and civic engagement projects at Princeton and other institutions related to environmental sustainability. He also is chairman of the Environmental Defense Fund.  

CHARLES GIBSON ’65 was anchor of ABC’s World News and co-anchor of Good Morning America. In his more than 40 years in broadcast journalism, Gibson reported from around the country and the world.  

PHILIP HAMMARSKJOLD ’87, the CEO of Hellman & Friedman, a private-equity investment firm, has served as a member of the PRINCO board and will become its chairman July 1.

MEG WHITMAN ’77 spent 10 years as the CEO of eBay Inc. and was a gubernatorial candidate in California in 2010. A contribution from her family supported the construction of Whitman College, which opened in 2007.  

MIN ZHU *88 is special adviser to the managing director of the International Monetary Fund. He previously was deputy governor of the People’s Bank of China, and he established the Prince­ton Alumni Association of ­Beijing.  

Berg and Whitman will serve 10-year terms as charter trustees; the others will serve four-year terms. Berg, Ferenbach, Gibson, and Whitman served previously on the board.